DAY 1: MICHIGAN DUNES

The adventure begins…

This is usually the time of year that I’m traveling with Dad. Our National Parks road trips traditionally took place in mid-October. Off peak season, less busy and less expensive. So, this week, archive storage tools like Google photos keep reminding me that we should be traveling together.

I miss him.

But today marks the beginning of a different journey. My heartsong, the dream cross country road trip that I’ve planned and planned for. I’m traveling with Portland, my lovable, silly dog that does not know what he’s in for.

It’s power anthem time… “This is me!” (from The Greatest Showman)

I’m never surprised when the night before a big trip I toss and turn and wish for sleep while the hours tick by, anticipation building. But I was surprised this week by how prepared I was leading up to this major trip, with very little to do but follow my packing list and load the car. So, we set off this morning on our journey west. I’m continually surprised by my Subaru Outback’s ability to have the perfect amount of space for all I’ve packed into it...for now. It’s going to look like a crazy person and her dog are living out of it in....I’ll give it 48 hours.

I was eager to hit the road today. Ready to press play on my Wildly Sarah playlist and just drive. That lasted about three hours until somewhere on I-80 in Ohio, when the vibrant fall foliage and “leaf peeping” gave way to drab flat tan fields and farmlands. Maybe I was tired, but it felt like I was driving for a long time but not really getting anywhere. Am I in Indiana yet? My thoughts flashed forward to days and drives ahead...have I made some crazy mistake?

This is the magic of road trips. The seemingly endless hours in the car with little moments of excitement rewarding you along the way. This afternoon, somewhere over Ohio, a patchwork of white puffy clouds against a bright blue sky. I was thinking of Dad, and when I looked up I saw a cloud heart, somehow standing out so obvious and perfect to me in the endless quilt squared clouds up above. Thanks Dad. When I saw a billboard for Wendy’s I could hear him telling me about all the fast food coupons I could have taken from his Jeep at home. Other times, the excitement was just seeing a field of cows...but surprisingly, only one I can remember.

As I got closer to my destination on the shores of Lake Michigan, there were a few cute places in small towns. Anxious to reach the campground, I still had to turn the car around for the sign for the place so proud of their liverwurst that they called it ‘liverbest’.

Warren Dunes State Park on Lake Michigan is beautiful, and I remember Red Arrow Highway, outside the park from our family trip to Indiana Dunes in April 2019. We arrived just after 5pm, and the ever patient Portland waited as I checked in at the campground office. The grounds were pretty busy, seeming crowded in places since it is the weekend, but somehow I lucked out with a nice private site and the campsites on either side of me empty! Portland was eager to stretch his legs as I set up camp in under 30 minutes. Tent, air mattress, sleeping bags and camp chair all set up for when we get back from a hike. On the way to the trailhead, we stopped at the camp general store and bought a bundle of firewood, something I would typically rather forage for, but tonight is all about easing into the trip.

On the trail by 6pm, and sunset at 7pm, there was a short two mile loop between numbered points 2, 3, and 1 that worked really well. It was the Mount Randal Trail, through and over a forested sand dune, and it was such a unique experience. We had the opportunity to hike a similar trail as a family last year, but chickened out when we were surprised by the severe tick warnings at Indiana Dunes National Park. We ended up sticking to the main trails and not hiking as much as we wanted. I was disappointed in not being prepared, but today I was, spraying down my pants, shoes and Portland’s legs with YaYa Tick Ban - my go to. I only had to flick one tick off Portland!

The dense woods with colorful fall leaves were beautiful, and the winding trail worked up the dune through the forest. It seemed crazy to see tall trees growing up out of the sand! Finally, we made it out to a clearing where the lakefront dunes cascaded on to Lake Michigan, the wispy dune grasses swaying in the wind. Silvery in the light of near sunset.

I think Portland was surprised to find the lake stretched out before us. We walked along and he licked at the water, his feet leaving paw prints in the wet sand. We had to head back soon after we arrived, the greying light around 7pm signaled sunset through the clouds. Up towards a public beach area with a parking lot, I turned back and got a good view of the bright red orange sun descending into the depths of the lake. I hadn’t expected to see that at all! Beautiful.

The walk back didn’t have much signage, and the dunes stretched out so vastly ahead of us, past the parking lot that for a moment I second guessed our route, having the feeling that, if we made a wrong turn we would be lost among the dunes! I asked the one other hiker along our route, and checked my GPS app to be sure. My fears were a bit unfounded. Even if we were “lost,” we could always go back the way we came. I had my headlamp ready, but batteries from Aldi are questionable.

The walk through the now more traditional type of sand dune was peaceful at dusk. We had a lot of fun running our way down the dune through the sand in big bounding steps. Back at the car, I dumped sand from my shoes, loaded Portland into the car after a quick tick check, and did a few minutes of research.

The small town of Sawyer, MI is less than ten minutes from the campground and we drove there to Greenbush Brewing Company so I could pick up a few local beers. I wasn’t really in the mood for a restaurant meal, but they didn’t have dog friendly seating, either. So Portland waited in the car while I ran into their bottle shop and asked an employee for a suggestion on two bottles to take home. I walked out with a four pack.

Back at camp, Portland roamed the campsite on his ten foot lead, getting himself tangled and causing me a bit of anxiety. I fumbled with the fire using one of my homemade dryer lint fire starters along with some foraged sticks and dry leaves. In the slight wind and my rush, it was not elegant. I used almost an entire book of matches. I’m usually great at starting fires, but tonight I was tired and impatient. Eventually the fire blazed and I set to work boiling water for dinner on my new camp stove.

While the water heated, I relaxed by the fire with an Anger black IPA from Greenbush. So tasty and very much needed. Dinner was a camp meal from Heather’s Choice that I picked up at 3 Rivers Outdoor Company. Bison Chili with chocolate. After the suggested 20 minutes to fluff the dehydrated meal, it still was not quite “inflated,” but I was hungry and eagerly ate by the fire. I tried to imagine the crunchy sweet potatoes were just tortilla chips mixed in.

As suspected, Portland spent most of the evening in the tent, but he did make an appearance for dinner (I used a spoonful of chili to entice him). I let the fire burn down with the $6 worth of wood and then joined him in the tent to write and relax with a One in the Same raspberry ale.

The first night of sharing a mummy style sleeping bag with my dog went about as well as I expected. We didn’t really zip into the bag, but it was okay. The temps were in the low 50s, high 40s and we slept pretty comfortably, listening to the blowing winds that seemed to only touch the tops of the trees. The sound soothing like large waves on the lake.

The trip is off to an amazing start. Stay tuned for tomorrow’s adventure!

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